Life and Works of Jane Austen

Despite the treasure trove of information that we have about Jane Austen's historical time and place, we actually have very little direct knowledge about her life. Look at what we do know from her surviving letters, and take a closer look at the facts and fictions that have persisted over time about her life.

Many readers come to Austen's fiction thinking that they are about to encounter sedate, small-scale, realistic stories. But as you will see, when Austen first began writing as a teenager, her style and her subjects were far more risk-taking and boisterously comic. Explore her juvenilia and discover the surprising beginnings of her literary efforts.

Jane Austen's first published novel is often overshadowed by her second; but as you will see, Sense and Sensibility is a deeply felt and complex look at romantic and familial relationships. Meet the Dashwood sisters and follow the ups and downs of their pursuit of happiness as you also get an introduction to Austen's moving style and her clever humor.

The most beloved of Austen's novels, Pride and Prejudice has a deeply devoted fanbase of both literary critics and everyday readers. Look at what makes this novel so popular and long-lived as you examine the humorous details of Austen's characters, the appeal of her heroine Elizabeth Bennet, the epigrammatic style of her prose, the book's emotionally resonant plot, and more.

Mansfield Park is perhaps the most controversial of Austen's finished novels. Meet Fanny Price, the unassuming heroine at the center of this more serious entry in Austen's oeuvre, and see why Austen's third novel is the most divisive among readers. Through Fanny's travails and quiet rebellion, Austen would create a complex story that examines the dynamics of family, power, work, and gender.

If any novel invites an enriching experience through multiple readings, it's Emma. See why many consider Austen's fourth published novel to be her masterpiece and how this story rewards those who revisit it over time. Consider the many dimensions that make Emma more than just a love story and discover why the personal development of a heroine like Emma Woodhouse is so deeply satisfying.

One of the two novels published after Austen's death, Northanger Abbey is Austen's love letter to the gothic novels of her youth. Look at the gothic tradition of the late 1700s and how Austen's gentle mocking of the melodramatic flourishes of the genre inform the experiences of her impressionable young heroine, Catherine Morland.

Austen's last completed novel, Persuasion, is slower in pace and more melancholy in tone than her earlier work. Look closely at two defining features of the story: its focus on age and aging and its more direct approach to real-life political events of the time. Better appreciate the many complex dimensions of Austen's final published work.

Turn now to the realities of Regency life with a look at romance and courtship, something that lies at the heart of every Austen plot. Examine the power dynamics between the genders and how they shaped courtship, the opportunities young people had to meet, and how various couples in Austen's novels exemplify or subvert the heavily controlled nature of Regency romance.